I was under the impression that the 777 did not have a feature where visible ice build up on the windshield showed up.  However the other night I was in transit from YMML (Melbourne) to KSAN (San Diego) and a few hundred miles southwest of Hawaii i ran into some ferocious thunderstorms.  I was too heavy to climb any higher than 35,000 feet and the storms were really widespread making it difficult to go around so like the bad capt that I am I plowed through.  The lightening was really intense so I ended up turning on the Storm lighting in the cockpit.  That's when I noticed what looked like ice building up along the edges of both front windshields.  This could have just been an illusion caused by using the storm lighting, maybe that's the way the glass looks at night and I never noticed it before, since I've never had to use the storm lights.  But then I wondered if PMDG had slipped that in this last upgrade?

 

Richard Bansa

Glad you've asked; I too noticed what I thought was ice on a flight to Warsaw but then couldn't  be sure if it was simply as you describe in that it normally looks like that and it's just that I've never paid close attention to that area of the windscreen in the past.

Capt R, TABS, Kyle, what say ye gentlemen?

 

Richard Bansa

My guess is you are seeing the inside of the invisibility cloak PMDG have added to hide the VAS from FSX.

screen shots next time

My bet would be internal reflection on the glass, but it is not impossible, as an effect like the glowing brakes uses a similar method to what would be involved in ice buildup, as shown quite nicely on the Majestic Q400. For a 777 to get visible ice on any surface, at altitude, something must be quite wrong (Anti-ice and window heat turned off)

Peter, I did actually take screen shots, I'll post them tomorrow night (1-13) when I get home. It's been a long while since I posted a screenshot so I'll have to figure out how to do it, but it shouldn't be too hard.

 

Richard Bansa

be gentle her folks - this is my first screenshot in about 10 years i don't even know if it'll show up.  I tried following the "how to post a screenshot" steps in the screenshot forum. for some reason the picture is coming out like an old negative film. THis is actually good because I did not take any screenshots while the storm lighting was on so on the regular screeshot you can't see the "ice" - on this negative looking shot though if you look at the left vertical side of the left windshield you can see the icing effect I am talking about.

 

2016-1-10_0-8-6-169 by richard bansa, on Flickr

 

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Richard Bansa

Hi,

 

I can assure that this effect is not new. I have seen it since the beginning. Whether it is icing, dust, reflection or just condensation I don't now but it is there on every flight. It is visibl on both daytime and night time and does not seem to depend on altitude nor on temperature but I could be wrong.

I think it's just part of the reflection texture they baked into the window modeling to add a little more realism. Sorta like putting some of the smudge prints on the display screens...

Maybe coming 747 will have some new extra features like icing etc.

Yeah I have to agree this shows up in all weather conditions - I can't see it in the day or even at night with regular cockpit lighting, the only way I see it is at night with cockpit lighting turned on. But it is apperantly just part of the texture. Had me exited for a second there though.

 

Richard Bansa

I remember discussing this in a previous thread when the 777 was first released. I think everyone concluded it was just flecks of spit and miscellaneous grime. Gives the cockpit a nice lived-in feel.

Like above its been there from day one. Its nice and only shows in some weather or some light.

 

One thing it is not and thats Ice.